MLB

[Orlando Tim]

2 hours ago, jaybills said:

Edmunds was not that great. All he did was cover range side to side. Couldn't shed a block to save his life, never sacked anyone, and I don't remember him making game changing plays too often. #Replaceable. 

Seriously your going with he is below average when he was the captain and leading tackler of the #1 defense two years in a row? I assume you think Chicago really screwed themselves with that contract?

[JoPoy88]

2 hours ago, harmonkillebrew said:

 

 

 

I'm having a hard time understanding our small LB drafting strategy. 

 

 

Whatever man. i feel like you have a hard time understanding a lot of things. Trust that Beane knows more than you. Calm down and wait and see.

[LABILLBACKER]

2 hours ago, oldmanfan said:

Exactly.  How much clearer does Beane have to be?  I do think we may see 3 LBs on the field more.

I'm hoping and praying we return to a more traditional 4-3 alignment.  And besides Milano, I'd have no problem seeing a rotation similar to the DL.  The days of the 255lb thumper is over. Linebackers will be smaller, lighter hybrids capable of coverage and blitzing. 

[appoo]

Run fits > hammering guards and block shedding 

[oldmanfan]

10 minutes ago, LABILLBACKER said:

I'm hoping and praying we return to a more traditional 4-3 alignment.  And besides Milano, I'd have no problem seeing a rotation similar to the DL.  The days of the 255lb thumper is over. Linebackers will be smaller, lighter hybrids capable of coverage and blitzing. 

I think the D may be a lot more varied and aggressive with McD calling it.

[ndirish1978]

They want interchangeable LBs. It was pretty obvious who the mike was at all times last year - it was the 6'5 guy standing in the middle. You can do this, but you need to get bigger on the Dline. That's why we have about 42 guys who are around 6' 220 vying for the job, the D is changing. 

[Chaos]

3 hours ago, 78thealltimegreat said:

We are clearly emphasizing speed over size at the position. The one thing I will say is based on the way they are structured it appears they are going to be a little more aggressive and gamble a little more instead of sitting in the cover 2 shell. 
The offense the Bills have the can afford to do it to try to gain an extra possession or two 

How do teams gain extra possessions? 

[MrEpsYtown]

Well I didn’t buy the whole Dodson has a chance to start deal. Now I kind of have to. He’s only 24 years old about to turn 25, been in the system 4 years now. He has good size and athleticism. He has hung around this long because McDermott loves him. Remember that he served a suspension coming into the league. There were red flags…yet the Bills held on to him, stood by him, and he worked to stay. If I am a betting type man, I would say it’s his job to lose. I feel like McDermott maybe wants to give Dodson a real shot at this. 
 

However, I do think Baylon Spector is going to give him a run for his money. He has instincts and athleticism. He is a few pounds lighter but more athletic. Spector is also 24 going on 25. So there isn’t any advantage there. Dodson has all that experience over Spector. What Spector was lacking in was functional strength and if he got after it this offseason, he truly has a shot. I just keep going back to how good he looked in preseason and he was a difference maker playing at a high level at Clemson. One other thing is that he played in the 4-2-5 as a stacked backer at Clemson, which essentially what the mike is asked to do here…though he spent most of his time as a will, I think he can play the mike.  
 

To me Bernard isn’t in this thing. He’s smaller than these guys, and I just didn’t see anything last year that told me he could step in and be a starter this year at mike. He also played in that 3-4 type front at Baylor so the job and run fits are quite different. I think he is still two years away and in my mind, Dorian Williams is already better.  I dunno. 
 

To me Klein is the vet you have around as insurance if this all goes FUBAR, but I am not sure he is a truly a starter anymore. 
 

I like Dorian Williams and I think he can play mike. He played it for 3 years at Tulane. I think Beane’s apprehension about playing him inside is that he likely feels Williams will not be able to step in and be the green dot guy right away. IMO the only guy in this draft who could have done that was Campbell. Williams is only 21 goin on 22 and started at Tulane for 3 years. He is likely not ready but the upside is there. If I recall, McBean were super apprehensive about Tremaine being the guy calling the defense as a rookie. They had their doubts and said some of the same things they are saying about Williams now, but Tremaine picked it up quick. I could see the same thing happening here. 
 

So to me it is Dodson vs Spector (if he got stronger) with an outside chance Williams blows them both out of the water. 
 

 

Edited April 30, 2023 by MrEpsYtown

[Buffarukus]

1 hour ago, MrEpsYtown said:

Well I didn’t buy the whole Dodson has a chance to start deal. Now I kind of have to. He’s only 24 years old about to turn 25, been in the system 4 years now. He has good size and athleticism. He has hung around this long because McDermott loves him. Remember that he served a suspension coming into the league. There were red flags…yet the Bills held on to him, stood by him, and he worked to stay. If I am a betting type man, I would say it’s his job to lose. I feel like McDermott maybe wants to give Dodson a real shot at this. 
 

However, I do think Baylon Spector is going to give him a run for his money. He has instincts and athleticism. He is a few pounds lighter but more athletic. Spector is also 24 going on 25. So there isn’t any advantage there. Dodson has all that experience over Spector. What Spector was lacking in was functional strength and if he got after it this offseason, he truly has a shot. I just keep going back to how good he looked in preseason and he was a difference maker playing at a high level at Clemson. One other thing is that he played in the 4-2-5 as a stacked backer at Clemson, which essentially what the mike is asked to do here…though he spent most of his time as a will, I think he can play the mike.  
 

To me Bernard isn’t in this thing. He’s smaller than these guys, and I just didn’t see anything last year that told me he could step in and be a starter this year at mike. He also played in that 3-4 type front at Baylor so the job and run fits are quite different. I think he is still two years away and in my mind, Dorian Williams is already better.  I dunno. 
 

To me Klein is the vet you have around as insurance if this all goes FUBAR, but I am not sure he is a truly a starter anymore. 
 

I like Dorian Williams and I think he can play mike. He played it for 3 years at Tulane. I think Beane’s apprehension about playing him inside is that he likely feels Williams will not be able to step in and be the green dot guy right away. IMO the only guy in this draft who could have done that was Campbell. Williams is only 21 goin on 22 and started at Tulane for 3 years. He is likely not ready but the upside is there. If I recall, McBean were super apprehensive about Tremaine being the guy calling the defense as a rookie. They had their doubts and said some of the same things they are saying about Williams now, but Tremaine picked it up quick. I could see the same thing happening here. 
 

So to me it is Dodson vs Spector (if he got stronger) with an outside chance Williams blows them both out of the water. 
 

 

 

good insight i really didnt think dodson was in any contention because they choose klien in edmonds absence. or was dodson on suspension during that time? he def has somthing the front office likes but i agree with the Spector analysis. it always seems strange to me when guys seem like great players in preseason then fall off the map. the argument is "well they are playing guys that will be flipping burgers". no. they are playing against the the competition they are given and excelling. they cant demand to be first string so this is all that can be assessed. the coaches obviously see more in practice but how can anything definitive be said about how they do against better players if not given the legitamate opportunity. i really like Spector and hope i can see what he's got against starting caliber players. 

[harmonkillebrew]

1 hour ago, MrEpsYtown said:

Well I didn’t buy the whole Dodson has a chance to start deal. Now I kind of have to. He’s only 24 years old about to turn 25, been in the system 4 years now. He has good size and athleticism. He has hung around this long because McDermott loves him. Remember that he served a suspension coming into the league. There were red flags…yet the Bills held on to him, stood by him, and he worked to stay. If I am a betting type man, I would say it’s his job to lose. I feel like McDermott maybe wants to give Dodson a real shot at this. 
 

However, I do think Baylon Spector is going to give him a run for his money. He has instincts and athleticism. He is a few pounds lighter but more athletic. Spector is also 24 going on 25. So there isn’t any advantage there. Dodson has all that experience over Spector. What Spector was lacking in was functional strength and if he got after it this offseason, he truly has a shot. I just keep going back to how good he looked in preseason and he was a difference maker playing at a high level at Clemson. One other thing is that he played in the 4-2-5 as a stacked backer at Clemson, which essentially what the mike is asked to do here…though he spent most of his time as a will, I think he can play the mike.  
 

To me Bernard isn’t in this thing. He’s smaller than these guys, and I just didn’t see anything last year that told me he could step in and be a starter this year at mike. He also played in that 3-4 type front at Baylor so the job and run fits are quite different. I think he is still two years away and in my mind, Dorian Williams is already better.  I dunno. 
 

To me Klein is the vet you have around as insurance if this all goes FUBAR, but I am not sure he is a truly a starter anymore. 
 

I like Dorian Williams and I think he can play mike. He played it for 3 years at Tulane. I think Beane’s apprehension about playing him inside is that he likely feels Williams will not be able to step in and be the green dot guy right away. IMO the only guy in this draft who could have done that was Campbell. Williams is only 21 goin on 22 and started at Tulane for 3 years. He is likely not ready but the upside is there. If I recall, McBean were super apprehensive about Tremaine being the guy calling the defense as a rookie. They had their doubts and said some of the same things they are saying about Williams now, but Tremaine picked it up quick. I could see the same thing happening here. 
 

So to me it is Dodson vs Spector (if he got stronger) with an outside chance Williams blows them both out of the water. 
 

 

Good analysis, but I can't say any of this gives me confidence in our D this year.  We missed Edmunds the few times he was out and we just don't have an adequate replacement, let alone an upgrade. It's looking like our D will take a step backwards this year. The front office screwed up.

[MrEpsYtown]

1 minute ago, harmonkillebrew said:

Good analysis, but I can't say any of this gives me confidence in our D this year.  We missed Edmunds the few times he was out and we just don't have an adequate replacement, let alone an upgrade. It's looking like our D will take a step backwards this year. The front office screwed up.

 
Yeah its a calculated risk they are taking because they did not want to spend money on the position. There most certainly will be a step back at the position. How much that affects wins and loses remains to be seen. I suppose the are banking on everyone around the positions improving. The story was always that Tremaine affected the game in ways we couldn’t see. We will find out if that is true or not pretty quickly. 
 

If I’m the Bills, I am calling the Chargers to see what it would take to get Kenneth Murray. They just rejected his 5th year option and took his replacement in Daiyan Henley. I think Murray would excel in this system. Maybe it costs a 5th? Maybe a guy like Boogie or AJ fit better as 5 techs in their D? Free agency is pretty dry there, so maybe a trade like this could be had. 

[JerseyBills]

4 hours ago, Beck Water said:

 

You could see it right here in the Williams thread.  By me.

They're not "all", but 4 out of 10 are same height or shorter.  Bit heavier, but I do believe the S&C crew can fix that if Williams is willing to put in the work.

 

 

Well yeah, but Beane also didn't say "we believe the answer IS in house", he said somewhat more waffling stuff like "the answer MAY BE in house."

Ya he probably has to put on a good 10-20 pounds but overall,  his size is being super exaggerated 

[T master]

17 hours ago, harmonkillebrew said:

Anyone have any idea WTF we're doing??

 

Options:

- Edmunds was such a bad fit that we decided we didn't need to replace him?

- We're going to play more base 3 LB, with no real "MLB"

- we're moving to a 3-4 and Daquan Jones will play NT

- We will sign a FA MLB (who's left... Myles Jack?)

- Klein will be a stop-gap at MLB until Dorian Williams can learn the defense and gain 15 lbs

- others?

 

 

I'm having a hard time understanding our small LB drafting strategy. 

 

 

 

They had more than 1 chance to get a MLB that would have a decent upside but didn't but Beane knows better than i do so i'll just go with it for now & i'm sure those haters here will let him know if it doesn't work out .

[boyst]

16 hours ago, HOUSE said:

Linebackers are over rated

 

I make it a policy to state why I disagree. 

 

Linebackers are underrated because the position is so weak in quality in today's NFL. The offensive skill positions growth in the last 10-15 years out paced defense that defenses haven't caught up. Exacerbated but the NFL leaning rules to favor the offense.

 

Today's linebackers don't attack downhill,  they can't give up on the pass. Today's LBs can't be bruising hitters because they'll be penalized. We have a unique skillset on defense that isn't fair to draw to other teams because we run such a specialized scheme. 

[EasternOHBillsFan]

11 hours ago, harmonkillebrew said:

Good analysis, but I can't say any of this gives me confidence in our D this year.  We missed Edmunds the few times he was out and we just don't have an adequate replacement, let alone an upgrade. It's looking like our D will take a step backwards this year. The front office screwed up.

 

Frazier isn't around... this is now fully McD's D... this season is on him. I'd wait and see as to how our defensive schemes and game plans change...

[frostbitmic]

13 hours ago, Chaos said:

How do teams gain extra possessions? 

Score quickly, create turnovers and recovering onside kicks..

[Chaos]

21 minutes ago, frostbitmic said:

Score quickly, create turnovers and recovering onside kicks..

Only onside kicks actually create an exta possession. Otherwise possessions simply alternate.  Each drive has four ways to end, a score, turnovers, turnvover on downs, or a punt. 

[LyndonvilleBill]

Is it really crazy to think a switch from nickel to more base 4-3 is in the cards based upon the current roster? I know it's not a McDermott mainstay, but could a change in philosophy happen under the circumstances?

 

Is it even possible that TJ could be traded in this case? I don't know how it would work with his contract. Is it even feasible?

[Mike in Horseheads]

Oh, I thought this was a baseball thread. Go O's!!!

[In Summary]

18 hours ago, Buffarukus said:

i said this as well. our team is in a division with pretty good run attacks and these small fast lbs dont seem like good stick your face in the line stack and shed players.

....thus the thought of what DTs you put in front of them matters.